The Warsaw District Court – in a precedent-setting verdict – has awarded compensation to Maja Czarnecka, a Polish journalist for the AFP news agency and the Franco-German TV channel ARTE. In September 2021, she and two other journalists (German citizens) were detained by police after accidentally crossing into the state of emergency zone at the Polish border with Belarus. During the detention, the journalists were stripped of their equipment and placed in custody for more than 24 hours. The following day, they were taken to the Sokółka District Court, which officially reprimanded them.

The Polish Ombudsman filed a cassation complaint in this case, on the basis of which the Supreme Court of Poland acquitted the journalist. Subsequently, the District Court in Warsaw issued a judgment in which it confirmed the illegality of the Council of Ministers' decree imposing a ban on entry into the state of emergency zone, awarded journalist monetary compensation from the State Treasury for unlawful detention, and ruled on compensation for the execution of the reprimand. The two cases involving the detention of the other ARTE TV journalists are pending.

Dentons partner Patrick Radzimierski represented the journalist on a pro bono basis at the hearing before the Warsaw District Court. Joanna Kornaszewska (senior associate) and Karol Olszewski (associate), and (trainee) Jan Kozakoszczak also helped prepare the motion and participated in the proceedings.

"This case is an important victory for civil liberties and freedom of the press in Poland," said Patrick Radzimierski. "This is a precedent-setting case, in that the court confirmed the illegality of the decree establishing the ban on entry into the state of emergency zone near the Polish border with Belarus."

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